Ericsson will debut more than 10 radio solutions at Mobile World Congress 2023 (MWC23) Barcelona at the end of this month. The OEM says it’s able to cut carbon emissions and site footprint, increase energy performance and boost network capacity. Ericsson is an active participant in the O-RAN Alliance and says it believes in the value of openness in mobile networks. But where were the Open RAN products? That is the big question.
At least part of the answer appears to be a lack of integration between the Open RAN standard and the 3GPP standard, according to Nokia CEO Tommi Uitto as reported by Mobile Europe. “The standard is too open,” Uitto said.
There is not enough incentive for Ericsson, which is the top proprietary 5G OEM, to spend the money on research and development on equipment with what some call an ill-defined standard, industry leaders have said. But others note that Open RAN technology use has spread to 31 carriers globally, including DISH Wireless, and they say Ericsson risks getting left behind.
With that said, the OEM is making great strides in helping carriers approach Net Zero greenhouse gasses. Its new line of 4G and 5G remote radios, highlighted by the triple-band FDD Radio 4485, is 53 percent lighter and consumes about 22 percent less energy. Ericsson is also showing off a line of wideband Massive MIMO radios, led by AIR 6476, which provides 600 MHz of bandwidth. Interference Sensing software will optimize mid-band Massive MIMO performance. Additionally, the new quad microwave radio MINI-LINK 6321 will provide 4.8 Gbps capacity with a 50 percent smaller site footprint.
Meanwhile, there will be 65 demonstrations of O-RAN technology at MWC23, showcasing the O-RAN ecosystem progress. Live demonstrations will feature Open Interface, Open Source, Open Cloud, Open White Box, Open RAN Stack, and Open Xhaul. Additionally, the O-RAN Alliance will participate in the “Open RAN – The Debate” session.
By J. Sharpe Smith, Inside Towers Technology Editor
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